The Port of Barcelona on Thursday (11 June) said it signed a new strategic cooperation agreement with the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission (SMTC) and Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG). The agreement officially establishes the “sister ports” relationship between Shanghai and Barcelona and aims to boost cooperation in areas such as the digitalisation and security of port operations; developing green ports and alternative fuels; intermodality and fostering sustainable maritime corridors between the Far East and the Mediterranean. The agreement was signed by José Alberto Carbonell, president of the Port of Barcelona; Xiao Hui, general director of the SMTC, and Yang ZhiYong, vice president of SIPG, in the presence of Jaume Duch, Regional Minister for European Union and Foreign Action. The relationship between the Port of Barcelona and the Port of Shanghai has intensified in recent years. In late July 2025, a preliminary agreement was signed between both port authorities, which led to a technical visit in September 2025 by a delegation from Shanghai led by Wang Haijian, Vice President and Director of Operations of SIPG, to advance the development of the Green Shipping and Digital Corridor between both ports. “This new institutional visit and the signing of the new agreement consolidates the Port of Barcelona’s position as a Euro-Mediterranean logistics hub and strengthens its links with one of the main ports and economic centres in the world,” the port said.   Photo credit: Port of Barcelona Published: 12 June, 2026